I work in the recreation staff at a huge resort and have NO office for plants to die in. One hour I’m in the arcade running an 8 Ball or Ping Pong tournament then I’m in another room doing arts and crafts with kids then I’m in another room hosting Family Feud then I’m in the gym getting a kickball or dodgeball game started (and lots more) but what’s cool is that before an activity I can pull out a yoyo and practice and management does not care because it fits the environment because all the vacationers are there for a great time and yoyoing does not make me look unprofessional! If any of you own timeshare points and come stay at Wyndham Shawnee Village in PA, ask for Activities Chris!

Way off topic here. Sorry. Next spring I will start seedlings then replant them. I wanted the sunflowers to just shed their seeds and grow back the next year but the groundhog will just eat them. I’m not hatin’ on lovely creatures, but I really want sunflowers out there!

I’ve worked in both a huge open bay with about 200 desks wall to wall, and a place that had cubicles. Prefer the semi-privacy of a cubicle over the open bay. Also at one time actually had a private office. That was great.

As a computer consultant for many years, I have worked in most all configurations that are out there. I seems that working at a picnic table with six other engineers is considered cutting edge these days. To me, it is like working at the school cafeteria. I guess they save money on buying cubes.

The best environment I ever worked in had private offices with two people per office. Just the best. But that was like 1989… Sometimes I wish we could go backwards just a little bit

I can’t remember if it was something I read or heard, but as I recall the information suggested that workers were more productive, in office spaces, when they felt they had someone looking over their shoulder. I believe the theory was that workers also were more apt to consult with their colleagues more frequently and make better decisions when they weren’t portioned into cubicles.

Personally, I’m a fan of privacy and getting the job done. I really don’t like distractions, so if I had to work in a large office with multiple people, I’d choose the cubicle.

I prefer a cubicle to an open office, but only because it’s the lesser of two evils. I’ve worked in both, and I prefer the semi-privacy of a cubicle, since I’m better able to focus on my work with fewer distractions. Here’s an article about the inventor of the cubicle, and what it came to mean to him:

You are correct. As far as I know, there was no scientific research prior to the open office craze. Once they looked into it, it was found to be counterproductive, but so many companies had sunk so much money into the arrangement that they just ignored the data and doubled down on open offices. Not surprising considering the cost associated with going back. I’ve always thought that cost was also the attractive reason for going to open offices. Basically it’s “here’s a big room with a cubby in the corner for meetings. You all figure it out” and if you can’t, they find someone who can.

The open office thing is nothing new, just popular again. The 200 desk bay I referred to above was at Boeing in the mid 1970s. It was a popular concept for all the aerospace companies and probably most other large companies. They’d used it for years before that.